Failure to Identify offense occurs when a person intentionally refuses to give name, address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully arrested the person and requested the information. Which term describes this offense?

• A. Resisting Arrest
• B. Obstruction of Justice
• C. Failure to Identify
• D. False Identification

Answer: (C)

The situation centers on a discrete offense that arises when a person, who has been lawfully arrested by a peace officer, intentionally refuses to provide identifying information such as name, address, or date of birth. This act is specifically labeled Failure to Identify, because the statute criminalizes the act of not giving the requested identifiers to the officer.

This differs from resisting arrest, which involves actively opposing or delaying a peace officer’s efforts to effectuate the arrest, rather than simply withholding identifying information. It also differs from obstruction of justice, which covers broader actions that impede the administration of the law or an investigation, not just the act of refusing to identify. Finally, it is not false identification, which would involve giving incorrect information; here the issue is refusing to provide any identifying information at all.